Improvement of the OpenESEA impact measurement framework: a technical action research

Abstract

This research set out to explore how the openESEA framework and its accompanying ESGA4Orgs meta-method can be applied and adapted to organisations in the cooperative energy sector. Through a technical action research study with EnergieSamen, the project aimed to understand how these organisations approach sustainability reporting and how the framework could better support them. By combining theoretical insights, method engineering, and participatory validation, this study contributed both practical and conceptual findings to the development of ESGA methods.

The results show that the specific characteristics of energy cooperatives strongly influence how ESGA practices can be implemented. The adapted method demonstrated that effective sustainability measurement for these organisations requires flexibility, transparency, and accessible tools. Applying the openESEA framework made it possible to operationalise ethical and social constructs in a structured way, while the co-designed ESGA Light variant offers a simplified entry point for smaller cooperative networks.

Academically, this research builds upon existing research on ESGA4Orgs by providing empirical, real-world evidence as opposed to more theoretical or simulated validation. The results show the potential of model-based practices to facilitate sustainability accounting practices in settings that are less company-focused and more societal in nature. This project delivers an initial, validated framework that EnergieSamen and similar organisations can further develop to monitor and communicate their impact.

Overall, this study demonstrates that sustainability accounting methods like openESEA can be both extensive and accessible when adapted to small, value-driven organisations. It reinforces that measuring impact should not only be an obligation but also an expression of intent. In that sense, this research returns to its original premise: making sustainability measurement achievable for smaller organisations not because they need to, but because they want to.